Comparex

Datacentre specialist Comparex entrusts the infrastructure of an international telecom giant to TelecityGroup, Netherlands

“TelecityGroup is a reliable partner where the staff recognize the urgency of infrastructure management and can react adequately to client requests and prospects.”

Paul Cohen,
Account Manager, Comparex

Comparex has been active as a service provider to the Dutch IT market for the past 30 years. Whilst in the past the mainframe played a central role, nowadays the staff can just as easily design, configure, install and manage IT solutions on Unix, Linux and Microsoft. For the past 5 years Comparex has concentrated on virtualisation as well as server and storage solutions in centralised datacentre environments. The company has a cast-iron reputation in this sector and can count among its satisfied clients not only many medium-sized to large companies in the Netherlands, but also several foreign clients. A request from one of these foreign clients to find the most suitable datacentre in the Netherlands brought managing director Fred van Wunnik and account manager Paul Cohen into contact with TelecityGroup Netherlands.

Comparex is a solution seller focusing on the design and implementation of server and storage solutions in centralised datacentre environments (Mainframe, Unix/Linux and Windows). Comparex analyses its clients’ problems as an autonomous integrator, finds a solution and then looks for the right products from suppliers such as EMC, NetApp, SUN, HP, Citrix, Microsoft, Novell, Datadomain, Cisco, Dell, VMware, Redhat and Symantec.

The solution can therefore include the products of just one supplier or a combination of suppliers, depending on the desired end result. After implementation Comparex often takes over the management of solutions. Comparex currently has 28 staff. The Comparex customer base varies widely and includes Dutch companies such as NS (Dutch Railways), KPN Getronics, KLM, Konica Minolta, various large banks, the Zorg en Zekerheid Insurance Company and a number of international clients. Comparex installs and manages operations in other countries for many of its clients. “Our extensive experience in shipping to ‘difficult’ countries is one of our advantages. Our clients need have no worries that expensive hardware might be held up at customs.” commented Paul Cohen

Telecom giant in the Middle East and Africa

For over 5 years Comparex has been responsible for the management of one of the datacentres of the largest mobile (prepaid) telecom operator in the Middle East and Africa. This datacentre, specifically for activities in Africa, was based in the Netherlands primarily because of the required network connections and the experience required in the telephone company’s offices. When the management decided to vacate its eight storey building in Hoofddorp and relocate all its staff to Bahrain, external accommodation had to be found for the datacentre. Comparex was  asked to look for suitable locations where the infrastructure could be housed.

Reaction speed as knock out criteria

Speed was an essential part of the entire operation. “The client wanted to relocate as quickly as possible due to the cost of renting the large premises at the main location in Hoofddorp, “ said Paul Cohen. “Penalty clauses, for us as well as for our client, would come into play if we did not keep the 1 August 2009 deadline.” The three main interested parties on our short list each received a request for information. Considering the tight deadline it was important for Comparex that suppliers react quickly and flexibly. “Despite our repeated urgent requests, one of the parties failed to respond,” said Fred van de Wunnik. “So there remained just two, one of which was TelecityGroup.”

Datacentre criteria

The new datacentre also had to meet a number of distinct criteria. It needed to be a state-of- the-art datacentre, with the highest possible availability ranking. Datacentres in this category have 99.999% availability, with separate additional connections for capacity and cooling, and a redundantly equipped fleet of machines (in other words, there must always be one machine more than is necessary to perform the activities). Besides which it had to be possible to use water cooled racks in the datacentre. Paul Cohen again, “TelecityGroup did not only meet all the criteria, but went a step further by guaranteeing 100% uptime. Being a telecom operator, the client preferred a network autonomous datacentre in which they could easily hook up to other networks and not be directly dependent on a competitor. And our own experience of the client told us that they attached great importance to visible quality, by which we mean an attractive and spotlessly clean building with precisely executed security procedures and regulations and the necessary certification. A place you would confidently show to your director, business partners, investors or important clients, so to speak. In the end we didn’t have to look any further than TelecityGroup’s Amstel Business Park”, said Paul with a smile.

Flexibility is ‘key’

Already during the implementation, TelecityGroup demonstrated its value as a proactive partner. “Relocating infrastructure is always a tough job. And with such a strict deadline you cannot afford any delays.If anything goes against us it is extremely useful if the supplier recognises the urgency of the situation. Because this client wanted to replace the older hardware we first clustered everything. These clusters would then be reassembled in the datacentre – without any downtime for the client – onto a brand new EMC Symmetrix V-Max – the first to become operational in the Netherlands. Unfortunately there was a delay in the plan, making it necessary to put the back-up plan into operation. With this we had to first move the existing hardware to TelecityGroup and then migrate the applications ‘in situ’ onto the new V-Max. This meant we temporarily needed some additional floor space in addition to the private suite already ordered. Within 15 minutes of our request an offer for extra space landed on my desk. TelecityGroup helps us meet our deadlines, which is exactly what we need.” said Paul.

Future

It is not easy for an international player in the hyper-dynamic telecom sector to look very far into the future when considering any necessary or desired changes to the infrastructure. The playing field can change drastically within a few months, with all the accompanying implications for clients, staff and IT management. Fred van de Wunnik again: “Flexibility and a custom made approach are required when it comes to servicing clients such as these. But a project which is scheduled after the relocation is a disaster recovery project, with redundancy implemented at two separate locations. We will have to see how and why in due course. But we are confident that TelecityGroup will support us adequately every step of the way.”

Comparex chose TelecityGroup because:

• TelecityGroup is a reliable partner where the staff recognise the urgency of infrastructure management and can react adequately to client requests and prospects.
• TelecityGroup can, as a network autonomous data centre provider, offer a choice of more than 50 different operators.
• Amstel Business Park, a state of the art data centre with the highest degree of availability, is equipped with highly trained staff, strictly enforced security procedures and more than adequate certification.
• Amstel Business Park is a high density data centre where it is possible to house apparatus to a maximum of 3500 Watts. As a result, the most modern virtualised server/storage infrastructure can be 100% SLA supported.

Technical specifications:

• private suite (approx. 50 m²) with space for 24 racks with a total capacity of 120 kW
• 9 extra temporary rack positions for the purposes of migration

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